Can religiosity be measured? Dimensions of religious commitment: Theories revisited

Abstract

This article aims to chart influencial approaches to understand religious committment and examines leading therories concerning dimensions and measurement of religiosity. Psychologists and sociologists of religion have long been concerned with the measurement of religiosity and religious committment. As pointed out by Wearing and Brown (1972: 143) the question of dimensionality remained as a persistent question in the pyschological analysis of religious beliefs, attitudes and behaviour. In the last twenty years psychologists and socioliogists of religion have spent considerable time and energy to the conceptualisation and measurement of religious committment. Roof, 1979: 17) Discussions on the nature of religious committment moved from simple and reductionist arguments as to whether religiosity is unitary phenomenon or a multidimesional matter towards more sophisicated issues culminating in synthesis of various theoretical frameworks.